Help settle another argument....

[torbee]

I am having a mild dispute over the definition of “doxxing” with someone.

Scenario: In a FB Group I belong to where local politics are discussed, there has been an ongoing argument over a bike path issue. The details aren’t that important, but a person on there found out - using a public online phone directory - that two of the biggest complainers actually don’t even live on the street where alleged problems are occurring.

When another poster put that info on the page, and called out the complainers by name, another member of the site freaked out, accusing them of “doxxing” said complainers.

To which I replied “you need to brush up on what doxxing is” as every definition I’ve seen is it is sharing PRIVATE or otherwise unknown info, not merely sharing easily accessed public info that can be gleaned from a 3 second Google search. The freaker outer disagrees and INSISTS sharing that info is indeed doxxing.

What sayeth the HROT intelligentsia?

 

[St. Louis Hawk]

Not doxxing.

 

[BelemNole]

I think it qualifies. They were posting under anon user names and the person outed them.

 

[ThorneStockton]

My understanding is it would doxxing if FB was anonymous or they were using an alias, and someone revealed their identities.

 

[JohnBasedow]

Unless “the person” posted their address online, I don’t consider it doxxing. There is some grey area if the addresses are posted. I mean they are publicly available, but almost everyone’s address is at this point thanks to the interwebz and most people don’t feel it is appropriate to blast that information on other platforms.

 

[millah_22]

I am having a mild dispute over the definition of “doxxing” with someone.

Scenario: In a FB Group I belong to where local politics are discussed, there has been an ongoing argument over a bike path issue. The details aren’t that important, but a person on there found out - using a public online phone directory - that two of the biggest complainers actually don’t even live on the street where alleged problems are occurring.

When another poster put that info on the page, and called out the complainers by name, another member of the site freaked out, accusing them of “doxxing” said complainers.

To which I replied “you need to brush up on what doxxing is” as every definition I’ve seen is it is sharing PRIVATE or otherwise unknown info, not merely sharing easily accessed public info that can be gleaned from a 3 second Google search. The freaker outer disagrees and INSISTS sharing that info is indeed doxxing.

What sayeth the HROT intelligentsia?

If they posted their addresses, it’s doxxing. If they only said “you don’t live on that street” that is not doxxing.

 

[Legend12]

I think it qualifies. They were posting under anon user names and the person outed them.

Wut?

 

[torbee]

I think it qualifies. They were posting under anon user names and the person outed them.

They were not. They were posting under their own name, which is how the address was found. By entering it into a simple phone directory search that is public.

 

[BABiscuit]

Not a dox.

That they don't live on the street is pertinent to the discussing. Doxxing, to me, needs to be the sharing of private info in order to intimidate or harass.

 

[Nipigu]

To search and publish identifying information is doxing. So yes it was.

Search for and publish private or identifying information about (a particular individual) on the Internet, typically with malicious intent.

 

[St. Louis Hawk]

To search and publish identifying information is doxing. So yes it was.

But the info was public and there was no bad intent. Thus, no doxxing.

 

[Nipigu]

Unless “the person” posted their address online, I don’t consider it doxxing.

The op says the person’s name was posted.

 

[JohnBasedow]

The op says the person’s name was posted.

They were posting under their real name.

They were not. They were posting under their own name, which is how the address was found. By entering it into a simple phone directory search that is public.

If torbee says on Facebook, “I looked up Joe Schmo’s address and he doesn’t even live on the road he is complaining about.” That isn’t doxxing.

If he says, “wow Joe Schmo, why are you posting about Main Street when you live at 123 OP’s Moms Drive?” That is doxxing.

 

[torbee]

But the info was public and there was no bad intent. Thus, no doxxing.

Well, the intent WAS to “shame” the person a bit. I wouldn’t say it was hostile, but definitely not friendly.

 

[torbee]

They were posting under their real name.



If torbee says on Facebook, “I looked up Joe Schmo’s address and he doesn’t even live on the road he is complaining about.” That isn’t doxxing.

If he says, “wow Joe Schmo, why are you posting about Main Street when you live at 123 OP’s Moms Drive?” That is doxxing.

In this case, they posted a link to the person’s address from the online town directory.

 

[Fan In Black]

I remember when doxxing was two peens meeting head on.

 

[cfbfan23]

I remember when doxxing was two peens meeting head on.

 

[BelemNole]

They were not. They were posting under their own name, which is how the address was found. By entering it into a simple phone directory search that is public.

Ah, my bad. In that case, not doxxing.

 

[JohnBasedow]

In this case, they posted a link to the person’s address from the online town directory.

I’m not the arbiter of doxxing (although many people are saying that I should be) but that seems fair game.

 

[UNIowaHawk]

I think it's still doxxing. Whether that person's address or phone number can be found online elsewhere is moot-- you can find damn near anyones address(s) online and many phone number, but its not your place (or your friends place) to post it on a site in this context. You defended it by saying you could find it with a 3 second google search-- where do you draw the line? What if it was a 5 minute google search? What if it was public records at the courthouse? What if you had a subscription to a service anyone could get like Lexis Nexis or Westlaw that made that info readily available?

 

[NDallasRuss]

They were posting under their real name.



If torbee says on Facebook, “I looked up Joe Schmo’s address and he doesn’t even live on the road he is complaining about.” That isn’t doxxing.

If he says, “wow Joe Schmo, why are you posting about Main Street when you live at 123 OP’s Moms Drive?” That is doxxing.

To me it would have to be more than that to be doxxing.

More like "Hey OPsMom69 - it turns out your real name is Francis Homebody and you live at 123 Moms Basement Ln, so quit acting like this bike path affects you!"

To me, that would be doxxing.

 

[torbee]

I think it's still doxxing. Whether that person's address or phone number can be found online elsewhere is moot-- you can find damn near anyones address(s) online and many phone number, but its not your place (or your friends place) to post it on a site in this context. You defended it by saying you could find it with a 3 second google search-- where do you draw the line? What if it was a 5 minute google search? What if it was public records at the courthouse? What if you had a subscription to a service anyone could get like Lexis Nexis or Westlaw that made that info readily available?

Personally, I draw the line solely on whether the info is private or public. If your info is out there, and you allow people to know who you are, it’s fair game.

Then again, I am one of the few on HROT whose real name and much public info is known, so maybe im jaded.

 

[cfbfan23]

To me it would have to be more than that to be doxxing.

More like "Hey OPsMom69 - it turns out your real name is Francis Homebody and you live at 123 Moms Basement Ln, so quit acting like this bike path affects you!"

To me, that would be doxxing.

 

[Rudolph]

They were posting under their real name.



If torbee says on Facebook, “I looked up Joe Schmo’s address and he doesn’t even live on the road he is complaining about.” That isn’t doxxing.

If he says, “wow Joe Schmo, why are you posting about Main Street when you live at 123 OP’s Moms Drive?” That is doxxing.

Thanks man now everybody knows my address. Dick.

 

[The Tradition]

Not doxxing.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

If they posted their addresses, it’s doxxing. If they only said “you don’t live on that street” that is not doxxing.

I don't know for a certainty, but that sounds reasonable to me.

What if the potential doxxer says “you don’t live on that street” and the potential doxxee says "yes I do" and then the doxxer publishes the address?

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

To me it would have to be more than that to be doxxing.

More like "Hey OPsMom69 - it turns out your real name is Francis Homebody and you live at 123 Moms Basement Ln, so quit acting like this bike path affects you!"

To me, that would be doxxing.

Well, that would be clear. But is something less than that also doxxing?

Let's also keep in mind that saying "you don't live there so quit acting like this affects you" is not actually a good argument against someone expressing an otherwise valid viewpoint.

I mean I don't live near a halfway house, but that doesn't mean I can't put myself in the shoes of someone who does, and venture an opinion.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Meanwhile, let's not forget the most important definition:

Definition of doxy
1 : floozy, prostitute
2 : mistress

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/doxy

 

[ping72]

If they posted under their name and they don’t hide their home address online...not doxxing.

 

[NDallasRuss]

Well, that would be clear. But is something less than that also doxxing?

For me it's the release of information that isn't publicly available. If the poster was using their real name, and a quick public search (not a secret DMV search) provided the address, then to me that's not doxxing.

Let's also keep in mind that saying "you don't live there so quit acting like this affects you" is not actually a good argument against someone expressing an otherwise valid viewpoint.

I mean I don't live near a halfway house, but that doesn't mean I can't put myself in the shoes of someone who does, and venture an opinion.

I agree on a macro level. Like posting on here about stuff that doesn't affect me. But something like a small neighborhood FB group talking about a specific localized issue - a person who doesn't live in that neighborhood and isn't impacted one way or another is I guess free to have an opinion if it's an open group. I think the people that do live there should be aware if some of the input they're receiving isn't also local to them - that opinion doesn't carry as much weight in that case.

It's like you saying that I shouldn't buy a new car. Sure, you can have an opinion, but your opinion shouldn't have the same weight as my family, and we should be able to tell if you're not in my family. (okay, the metaphor got a little strained there at the end, but hopefully you get my point!)

 

[Hoosierhawkeye]

I would say it's Doxxing. . .

I understand what they are trying to do but I think that the person doing it should have at the very least given them the chance to admit that they did not live on the street before they went and did that.

I kind of agree with @UNIowaHawk the most on this. Most information is public if you are willing to look hard enough. Doxxing isn't the work of some elite group of hackers being able to break into computer systems to find information. It's the work of people who know the system and are really willing to put in the work to find out someone's RL identity. Where do you draw the line?

I would say it's a mild offense in comparison to some but at the same time it would have been polite for them to give them a chance to fess up to not living on the street before you go do something like that.

 

[West Duval Nole]

If they posted their addresses, it’s doxxing. If they only said “you don’t live on that street” that is not doxxing.

This.

 

[torbee]

I would say it's Doxxing. . .

I understand what they are trying to do but I think that the person doing it should have at the very least given them the chance to admit that they did not live on the street before they went and did that.

I kind of agree with @UNIowaHawk the most on this. Most information is public if you are willing to look hard enough. Doxxing isn't the work of some elite group of hackers being able to break into computer systems to find information. It's the work of people who know the system and are really willing to put in the work to find out someone's RL identity. Where do you draw the line?

I would say it's a mild offense in comparison to some but at the same time it would have been polite for them to give them a chance to fess up to not living on the street before you go do something like that.

A 2 second Google search isn’t “knowing the system.” He’ll, my 75 year old mother in law can even manage to do that.

 

[Hoosierhawkeye]

A 2 second Google search isn’t “knowing the system.” He’ll, my 75 year old mother in law can even manage to do that.

No it's not but at the same time it is looking. Again you are asking a question of "How hard they had to look"

If someone has your name on here and then googles for more information and posts that information it's doxxing.

Thing is they took the extra effort. Granted that effort was not great deal but the extra effort makes it doxxing IMO.

 

[ConvenientParking]

Sounds like their real identity is known on FB. I say not doxing. You need only a minimal amount of wit to find an address if you know someone's name and town. You can argue the link to the address is a bit much, but anyone following along can connect the dots as soon as someone says "Person X of town Z doesn't live near that address in that same town."

Google, free online official county records, mined data